Above the Clouds the Sun always Shines!🌤️🌦️⛅️☀️

Chancellor’s Update

Dear Friends of New European College,

In times like these – full of political uncertainty, economic shifts, and rapid technological change – it’s easy to feel like you’re stuck in a fog.

But I want to remind you: above the clouds, the sun is always shining.

You might not see it at every moment, but it’s there — steady, quiet, and waiting.

Let me take you back to my own student days. In the first year of my Bachelor’s, I was writing a marketing research paper titled:

“Show me your shoes and I’ll tell you who you are.”
(Research on shoes and first impressions from the University of Kansas. Seems I was not too far off..)

A wonderful topic… until my printer broke one hour before submission.

Chaos. Frustration. I nearly gave up.

But eventually, I calmed down, asked a neighbor for help, printed the file, and submitted it on time.

Problem solved — and a life lesson learned: panic doesn’t print papers, persistence does.

In my final year, a similar moment came when I realised I had the old exam schedule and that meant I had two weeks, not four weeks, to prepare.

Again, I had to think fast, focus, break the task into manageable parts, and with some tutoring help from friends I passed both exams.

The truth be told – I passed because my friends tutored me every evening before the exams.

This taught me the importance of asking for help when in need, despite that I was terribly embarrassed to admit that I had not checked the date on the exam schedule print-out.

Support from friends – that’s what got me through.

 

This is the spirit I saw again during our most recent Wittenborg University of Applied Sciences Project Week, when students held a debating event on topics like globalisation, open borders, immigration, and sustainability at the Munich campus during the Wittenborg Globalisation Forum 2025.

It wasn’t just an academic exercise — it was a training ground for real-world thinking.

Students tackled complex topics with curiosity, courage, and care. And that, to me, is exactly what education should do: prepare you not just to know the world, but to engage with it.

Starting this weekend, world leaders will gather in Belém, Brazil, for the UN Climate Summit — a reminder that the challenges discussed in the debates are the same ones being addressed at the highest global level.

This shows that what you’re learning here at Wittenborg University of Applied Sciences is not theoretical — it’s essential.

So as you move through your life, I encourage you to embrace these three reflections:

1.    Reframe challenges as opportunities – like Carol Dweck’s growth mindset teaches us, you are not fixed in your abilities. You grow by trying.

2.    Celebrate small wins – one paragraph written, one concept understood, one exam completed. They add up.

3.    Ask for help and offer it freely — we rise faster when we rise together.

So even when you’re overwhelmed, confused, or unsure — don’t forget:

• The sun always shines above the clouds.

Sometimes, all you need is to climb a little higher to see it.

Sunny regards,
Sascha